We use cookies to give you the best possible experience on our site, and so that we and third parties can show you more personalised ads, including adverts on other websites. By continuing to use this site you agree to use of cookies. Change cookie settings.

House prices could be 10 times higher than earnings in 20 years

The ratio between house prices and earnings will widen to 10 times by 2037 if the market continues on its current trajectory, Housesimple.com research claims.

From 1970 and 2017 property prices outstripped earnings by 1.4 times, while this accelerated to 3.3 times between 1997 and 2017.

If this continued at the same rate the average property price in England would reach £1.5m by 2042.

Alex Gosling, chief executive of HouseSimple.com, said: “House prices won’t rise as sharply in 2018 as they have in previous years, but for many hopeful homebuyers, the prospect of saving enough money for a deposit is still a distant dream.

“If house prices keep rising at the rate we’ve seen over the past few decades – and salaries can’t equate – it will become extremely difficult for future generations to acquire property even with the financial help of their parents.”

Chancellor Philip Hammond pledged to up housing delivery to 300,000 per year by the mid-2020s in last month’s Autumn Statement to curb house price growth, though many experts doubt whether this an achievable target.